Chapter 84: Victory, Defeat, Life, and Death

Qian Ye seemed to be reaching for something, slowly bending down. In reality, there was more to it. If one could break his actions into frames per second, they would notice Qian Ye’s body swaying in an irregular rhythm, with the speed of his bending fluctuating.

This was a highly advanced evasion technique, capable of breaking free from a lock-on within inches. Yet, the crosshairs from afar remained fixed on Qian Ye’s brow, as if he hadn’t moved at all.

Qian Ye slowly straightened up, feeling a cool dampness in his palm—sweat. No matter how formidable the enemy, Qian Ye had the courage to face death, but this sniper who had helped him eliminate the foes sent a chill deep into his bones.

From the corner of his eye, Qian Ye saw the bodies of the dark races strewn across the ground and suddenly understood why the sniper had taken them out.

The sniper wanted a clean battlefield, a stage for only the cat and the mouse.

The phantom of the Primordial Wings dissipated, and Qian Ye’s eyes regained their deep-sea blue. In the ubiquitous darkness of primal force, the hazy purple aura stood out like a banner.

In the gray, real-vision world, the sniper once again revealed his presence. After firing a shot that killed three enemies, he had changed position again, this time approaching to within eight hundred meters.

Qian Ye took a deep breath, ignoring the needle-like discomfort on his forehead, and unabashedly retrieved the black titanium annihilation bullet, slowly loading it into the Bloodthirsty Mandala, the most powerful firearm.

The distant purple aura was rare but still belonged to the Dawn Force. Any life form that cultivated the Dawn Force, regardless of its form, was vulnerable to the special destructive effect of black titanium.

However, distance was the greatest obstacle. Even the Twinflower, as powerful as it was, was still a pistol. Even combined into a double-barreled short gun, its range was only about two hundred meters.

But now, Qian Ye had almost no chance of escape. The sniper had hit the Spider Baron from a thousand meters away, and even if Qian Ye burst into his highest speed, he wouldn’t be sure to get out of the shooting range before the sniper could fire again.

Thus, there was only one path to take: forward.

Qian Ye started running, almost leaping, with no discernible pattern to his landing points, while his body swayed gently. This kind of movement, though exhausting, was the most effective way to counter a sniper.

Sure enough, the feeling of being in the crosshairs instantly vanished.

Eight hundred meters away, Zhao Jundu stood atop a towering tree, his feet as steady as if he were on flat ground. When Qian Ye disappeared from the scope, he merely raised an eyebrow, and a straight, purple aura, like a banner, shot up behind him.

A deep blue light flashed before Qian Ye’s eyes, and the whole world seemed to turn into a vast sky. A strong sense of danger surged in his heart, and without time to think, he relied on instinct, abruptly accelerating, and sprinting with all his might!

In combat with a top-tier sniper, getting too close became extremely dangerous. With Qian Ye’s instantaneous reaction, he could avoid sniper shots from rifles below level four at a hundred meters, but once inside a hundred meters, complete evasion was uncertain. The more powerful the sniper, the larger the absolute danger zone.

Qian Ye judged that the sniper might be wielding a level seven heavy sniper rifle, making the danger zone at least two hundred meters. This was also the effective range of the Twinflower. It meant Qian Ye had only one shot. Hit or be hit—it was as simple as that.

As he sprinted, his real vision sketched out the trajectory lines of the force bullets, which extended from afar—five of them!

Qian Ye felt a chill. The sniper wasn’t firing five bullets at once, but adjusting based on Qian Ye’s movements. These five lines represented the possible paths of the bullet.

In the moment of life and death, a loud boom echoed in Qian Ye’s ears, and the sounds of the world disappeared, leaving only the low, sharp whine of the force array charging. Time seemed to slow, and Qian Ye turned, stepped, and leaped sideways, completely avoiding the five trajectories.

Far away, a hint of surprise flashed across Zhao Jundu’s face, and his eyes darkened. He removed his glasses, and two streams of purple celestial fire ignited in his pitch-black eyes, leaving behind a pair of deep purple pupils. He didn’t aim deliberately; he simply raised his gun and pulled the trigger.

Qian Ye emerged from the slowed time, feeling a momentary weakness. Before he could steady his breath, he noticed a force bullet appearing in the fading azure sky. There was no trace, as if it had materialized directly from the void.

It was unbelievably fast, almost appearing in front of Qian Ye as soon as it left the barrel.

In that split second when thought was impossible, Qian Ye’s mind was filled with one idea: the legendary gun technique—Hit!

The force bullet continued at an unimaginable speed, piercing Qian Ye’s left leg, passing through his body, and burrowing into the red soil, exploding in a small, shallow crater.

What spewed from Qian Ye’s leg wasn’t blood and flesh, but streams of light, like shattering a crystal doll. His body began to flicker and distort, turning into a shower of light, and he vanished.

Ten meters away, Qian Ye reappeared, the wings of the Primordial Wings flashing briefly, and he stumbled, nearly falling to the ground.

Void Blink!

At this critical moment, the Primordial Wings successfully triggered Void Blink, even though Qian Ye hadn’t met the minimum requirement. He only teleported a few meters, but at the cost of draining most of his blood energy. Now, only the dark gold and purple blood energies remained vibrant, while the nine ordinary blood energies had sunk deep into his heart, becoming extremely weakened.

But it was these few meters of Void Blink that broke the legendary gun technique: Hit.

At this moment, a figure approached from afar, trailing a comet-like tail of purple aura, and was soon within a hundred meters.

Qian Ye instinctively raised his hand, and the roar of the Bloodthirsty Mandala shook the heavens.

Zhao Jundu stopped abruptly, falling straight down and landing in a kneeling position, holding a two-meter-long heavy sniper rifle, and fired a shot as well.

Two force bullets collided in mid-air!

A blinding light illuminated the wilderness, followed by an earth-shaking explosion. The light radiated out for a hundred meters before beginning to fade, a force comparable to a Dawn Force cannon. Being hit, or even being close to the impact, was lethal.

The two were naturally blasted away by the shockwave. But for Qian Ye and Zhao Jundu, dealing with such a blast wasn’t a big problem, except for the lingering black titanium dust, which was somewhat unpleasant.

Qian Ye retreated quickly, safely emerging from the explosion, only slightly dusty. Zhao Jundu, with a flash of purple aura, landed straight down, shrugging off the powerful shockwave.

Finally, Qian Ye saw his opponent’s appearance. Surprisingly young, with a handsome, dragon-and-phoenix-like visage. Most striking were his deep, dark purple eyes, with a smoky, rising aura.

In contrast, Qian Ye’s appearance, influenced by his vampire blood, had a slightly sickly pallor, combining arrogance and rigidity. The young man opposite was even more striking, with a cool, otherworldly beauty.

The two stood facing each other, perhaps having shared a significant portion of the gods’ favor.

Qian Ye’s gaze fell on the sniper rifle in the man’s hand. It was a weapon he had never seen before, a two-meter-long bronze-colored rifle with intricate, three-dimensional patterns resembling the ancient beast Fengqi, known for soaring through the clouds. Its power matched its unforgettable appearance.

Compared to this, even the Eagle Strike, even the modified version with the Heavy Fist, was like a child’s toy.

The man held the heavy rifle in one hand, making it seem weightless.

He looked at Qian Ye and smiled, saying, “Zhao Jundu, from the Zhao Clan.”

Qian Ye was startled. He had, of course, heard of this name, the most famous genius of the younger generation of the Four Great Clans. Why was such a person in this desolate place, the Quiet Fire Plains? Was it for the incident in Li Bin City?

Qian Ye dismissed the idea. The matter in Li Bin City was significant, but not worth the personal involvement of the Fourth Young Master Zhao.

Yet, Zhao Jundu’s stance suggested he was here to kill Qian Ye.

“Why?” Qian Ye asked.

Zhao Jundu replied, “Defeat me, or be defeated, and you will know.”

Qian Ye frowned. They were ten meters apart, the optimal range for the Twinflower, while Zhao Jundu’s heavy sniper was no longer practical. He put away the Bloodthirsty Mandala, flexed his fingers, and clenched his fist.

Zhao Jundu smiled, planted the heavy sniper on the ground, and spread his arms like wings, starting the Flying Waterbird Fist.

Qian Ye had already experienced the Flying Waterbird Fist against Zhao Youping. He had shattered Zhao Youping’s stance with one strike and then overwhelmed him with a storm of attacks, leaving no room for counterattacks.

Would the same technique, in Zhao Jundu’s hands, be the same?

Qian Ye strode toward Zhao Jundu, the Military Conquest Technique instantly cycling through thirty-five rounds, the sound like thunder.

Several meters away, Qian Ye exhaled, increasing to maximum speed, sweeping a kick at Zhao Jundu with the force of wind and thunder.

Qian Ye put everything into this kick, leaving no room for variation, aiming to overwhelm Zhao Jundu with sheer force. Such an attack was the best counter to the agile and fluid Flying Waterbird Fist.

Facing Qian Ye’s leg, which could snap a thick tree trunk, Zhao Jundu raised both hands, joining them in the air like the wings of a waterbird. But in the next moment, Zhao Jundu’s fists crashed down with the force of a thunderbolt, incredibly powerful!

Leg and fist met, and a clap of thunder resounded in the clear sky. Both were sent flying backward. This exchange was a straightforward clash of power.

Qian Ye flipped in the air, landing steadily, but his feet suddenly sank into the ground, the shockwave plowing two long furrows. Zhao Jundu stepped back, retreating four or five steps, leaving axe-like footprints in the earth.

The result of this clash surprised both. They stared at each other, cold light flashing in their eyes, hostility flowing.

A foolish bird happened to fly overhead at that moment, crossing the midpoint between them. Suddenly, it plummeted from the sky, bursting into a blood mist before it hit the ground. Half the mist ignited with golden flames, while the other half was wrapped in purple aura, vanishing in an instant.

Zhao Jundu’s eyes glowed with purple, and he said, “Good, again!”

Qian Ye didn’t waste words, rushing forward, each step resonating with a tidal wave of sound. He raised his left hand, a crimson light swirling around his forearm, and slashed down like an ax. Zhao Jundu swept his palm, like the wing of a divine bird, unleashing a myriad of phenomena, as if a mountain was collapsing.

They clashed again, and another thunderous boom sounded!

Qian Ye used military combat techniques, sometimes even abandoning specific moves, launching relentless attacks. Zhao Jundu responded with the Flying Waterbird Fist, but in his hands, each move had the power and grandeur of earthquakes and mountains, devoid of any ethereal quality.

Their techniques were clear and precise, but every strike was like mountains colliding, seas rising and lands sinking. As the battle progressed, they no longer dodged, but instead exchanged blows, colliding head-on. Each clash consumed massive amounts of primal force.

The simpler and more brutal, the more powerful.

After an unknown duration, Qian Ye suddenly ran out of breath, and Zhao Jundu’s punch sent him crashing back, unable to hold back a spurt of blood as he fell heavily.

Zhao Jundu gestured, and the emerald sky lifted off the ground, falling into his hand. He held the rifle with one hand, the barrel pressed to Qian Ye’s chest, “You killed Zhao Youping, right?”

Qian Ye replied, “Yes, I did.”

Zhao Jundu smiled, “If you kneel and apologize, and join under my command, I’ll spare your life. How about it?”

Qian Ye closed his eyes, calmly saying, “Why bother? Skill is inferior, and defeat means death.”

Zhao Jundu nodded and pulled the trigger.

There was a click, the sound of the trigger hitting the striker.

Qian Ye opened his eyes, his clear gaze slowly filling with anger, and said coldly, “Is this amusing?”